Tag: cherry velvet plus

We want to hear from you!

You, our customers are the reason we’re here. It’s a goal of ours to always be improving your shopping experience with us. You can help us do that for you by taking a few minutes to fill our our Customer Survey. This is a perfect opportunity for you to tell us what you like, what you’re not so crazy about and what you would like to see in the future. We are listening!

Your Opinion Matters!

We have questions about what you’d like to see in fabric and colour choices for future dresses. We also want to hear about the prints that you would love to see turned into Cherry Velvet dresses. How do you feel about polyester? Would you be interested in a solid colour dress with no print? Are there any new clothing items or styles you’d like to see us carry? ( P.S. We’ve made a new Shrug / Cardi and it’s super cute!) Inquiring minds want to know!

To thank you for taking the time to share your opinions with us we would like to offer you a $25 discount on your next online Cherry Velvet order of $100 or more. New Spring styles are arriving as we speak! The discount is valid until the end of March 2018. Take the Cherry Velvet Customer Survey to receive your discount code.

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All in One Place

Are your girlfriends the exact same size as you? Maybe you and your girlfriend range from small to plus sizes? Whether you’re shopping for an event or just taking in some retail therapy together, it’s always great to have a trusted friend along for the journey. Who better to rely on than our besties when choosing a special outfit. Let’s face it, no one knows you better or sees your best qualities like your true pal.

Anyone who has tried to have this experience when shopping for two very different sized people will know the frustration. It often leads to running all over town to try to find one store for regular sizes and another store for plus sizes. It usually finds you shopping online on very different websites too. You may find that the regular size shops offer lots and lots of choices in a variety of fabrics and colours. You may have also found that the plus-sized buddy has much, much less to choose from. This can only cause irritation and somebody is going to be sad.

Cherry Velvet carries sizes S to 3X (and some XS and 4X too)! Actually, our most popular sizes are Large and up. We invited our friends Foxy and Lexi to come in for a photo shoot and do a little shopping. We wanted to show you how someone who wears a size Small and someone who wears a size 2X can look equally fabulous in the same dress. What a concept!!

Of course, we are always here to offer our online customer the best experience possible as well. We encourage you to call or email with any questions you may have and we will always do our best to find you the right styles and the best fit for you!

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Last week we shared a blog post about our friend, fat activist, writer, media maven and Fatshion Icon Cynara Geissler. We couldn’t fit all the photos and fabulous quotes into one little blog post so without further Adieu, we bring you Part Deux!

Anyone who knows Cynara knows that she has a very distinctive and committed style. She joyfully wears bright colours and amazing accessories to brighten up her outfits and anyone who she encounters throughout her day. Like a ray of fun, fashion sunshine! She is also brilliant and well spoken, natch.

Let’s get right to it, shall we?

Marie – Double Feature

Cynara is all ready for her movie date! She has paired our adorable Marie Double Feature Dress with her own red belt, red hair bow, and red and white classic canvas running shoes. This look is super cute but also comfortable and practical for rushing to get to the theatre in time to watch all those previews. Or a post-movie stroll with her sweetheart!

Olivia – Harvest Bloom

Cynara is wearing that same sweet red belt with our Olivia – Harvest Bloom Dress and here she has added red Mary Jane flats and a kelly green cardigan to pull it all together. Her own brooch and our Cherry Earrings complete this classic look.

Veronica – Blue Raspberry

This vision of turquoise and red is one of our favourite looks Cynara has put together. Veronica Dress – Blue Raspberry is fab on its own but with the contrasting red accessories, it pops with joy! A Cinnamon Hearts Vintage Chiffon Crinoline for fabulous floof is just so perfect for this dress. Here we see Cynara’s own red hair bow, and neck baubles but possibly the best things ever are her lace-up Pom Pom flats! Amazing!!

We hope that you have enjoyed this two-part blog all about Cynara Geissler as much as we have. We always look forward to seeing what Cynara is wearing, almost as much as we love to hear what she has to say!

XOX Cherry Velvet

Cynara is Director of Marketing and Publicity at Arsenal Pulp Press. Her critical writing on fat acceptance, fatshion, feminism, and media has found shelter in various print magazines and around the internet including fatshionista.com, Geez Magazine, and Shameless Magazine. Her poetry and fiction have appeared in Milo, Event, subTerrain, and Juice. Follow her on Instagram @cynaragee

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We must, we must, we must ad”dress” your bust!

An appropriate and well-fitting bra is really important for building the “foundation” of your shape under a dress. Make sure your bra straps are adjusted so that your bust is supported correctly (you know how the straps can stretch out!). When you put on one of our dresses, your bust should sit above the waistband. This will make the dresses look and fit better and should eliminate your breasts being cut in half by the waistband. Yes ladies, lean forward, adjust your breasts up and over the band and then complete the pulling up of the zipper. Much like when you put on a bra.

“When you go dress shopping please wear a great fitting bra! A sports bra or no bra just doesn’t cut it to get the best fit”

Under Where?

What you wear on the lower half of your body is totally your preference. Our Cherry Velvet dresses have extra room across the tummy to give you enough room that it’s not necessary to wear anything special on the bottom. It’s totally up to you! We are a big fan of being able to look great AND breathe!

Online shopping

All our bra fitting tips are just as important for when you’re measuring yourself to find your best dress fit online as well. Put on a well-fitting bra before you take your measurements to find your size. We made a short video with some easy to follow instructions to help you take simple and accurate measurements. Check it out!

Once you have your measurements you can check out our comprehensive Sizing Chart to find your size. Or you can call or email with your measurements and we will always be happy to help you find your best fit.

When you wear your Cherry Velvet Dress…

Please make sure you’ve chosen a bra that fits well with good support. We know you want to look your best and feel totally gorgeous when you’re wearing one of our beautiful dresses.

XOX Cherry Velvet

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The Holidays are almost upon us. Are you ready to stuff?… a Christmas stocking that is? Here are our best suggestions for stocking swag to make their face light up on Christmas morning. There’s not a lump of coal in sight!

Roll The Dice!

We don’t want you to gamble on her present this year but we can’t help but recommend these adorable Pair-o-Dice necklace and earring sets. They’re handmade in Canada and a steal at just $36 for the set. You can choose between red, green or white dice. The odds are in your favour that they’re going to adore this! We especially love this necklace with our Norma Dress in Parlour Ink print

Erstwilder Brooches

Our hottest selling item at the moment are these cute & quirky brooches from Australia called Erstwilder. Inspired by all things vintage, rockabilly, pinup, retro and art-deco, they’re a gift choice suitable for any fashionista on your gift list. They come boxed with a special story about the treasure inside that’s the perfect end at their Christmas stocking toe.

Cherry Baby!

‘Juicy’ Cherry sets are the perfect gift for any retro Diva. Sets include a necklace, bracelet, and earrings in your choice of Black glass (Cherry Cola) or White Pearl (Cherry Icing). The cherry theme goes with so many of our dresses Like Vanessa, Hard Candy and Marie, Double Feature.

Cherry Velvet Gift Card

Cherry Velvet Gift cards come in denominations from $10 to $200 so you can customize the amount you want to give. You can’t go wrong here! You can’t mess up the size, colour or pattern by leaving all the choices up to them. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the accolades. Now you can handle that, can’t you?

Of course, if you need any help at all with gift suggestions or sizing….the elves at Cherry Velvet HQ are happy to help. Please feel free to contact us by e-mail @ cherryvelvetplus@gmail.com and we’ll get back to you ASAP!

XOX Cherry Velvet

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Dresses + Shoes + Charity! (+ cupcakes!)

Last night Cherry Velvet Dresses, along with Fluevog Shoes held a very special event at the Fluevog store on Granville Street in Vancouver. We were thrilled to team up with Fluevog, our favourite purveyor of shoes on the planet. But even more important than tasty refreshments and goodie bags, and pairing gorgeous dresses with amazing shoes, was the third element of the Trifecta. We felt that Mom2Mom was the perfect charity to put our collective support. We wanted to let you know about this wonderful cause that supports families right here in our own neighbourhood.

About Mom2Mom Charity:

Mom2Mom works to improve the lives of children living in poverty by supporting their moms. In Vancouver, Moms in poverty struggle with incredible stress and isolation. This puts stress on the whole family and deprives both mom and children of connection to resources, positive influences, and opportunities.

We believe that when moms thrive, children thrive. Since 2011, Mom2Mom charity has worked to support moms’ wellbeing by reducing the stress and isolation of living in poverty.

Mom2Mom builds strength-based relationships and a caring community through a volunteer program; reduces poverty-related stress by supporting children’s basic needs, and provide opportunities and connection to resources for both mom and children. We envision a future where moms and their children thrive in caring and connected communities!

Our Fabulous Customers!

We couldn’t be more thrilled with the attendance at our event last night. It seems that the combination of fabulous frocks, sublime boots and shoes, social consciousness and wonderful people created just the right atmosphere for the perfect evening. Most of all, we want to thank everyone who took the time to show up and help make a difference in our own community. Ultimately it’s the kids who will benefit with the help of Mom2Mom and we are honoured that we could be part of that!

XOX Cherry Velvet

P.S. There’s a little sneak peak of one of our Men’s shirts coming soon in the last photo!

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Cosplay can be fun at anytime of year, but well duh, it’s Halloween! Squeee!! We love to play dress up so much we made an excuse to create fun costumes from Cherry Velvet dresses!

We love the idea of having a tickle trunk and are starting one here at the shop. A great starting point for so many ‘girl’ costumes is a crinoline and a corset. You’d be surprised at how many amazing costumes can start this way! Add a few items you may already have plus one or two from your fav Halloween shop and Voila! you have an original costume!

Barb the Barmaid

Picking a character or theme that you resemble makes cosplay easier. Barb is just a natural for this Hofbräuhaus style outfit, don’t you think? A little white apron is another great staple for your tickle trunk…it can become Alice in Wonderland, Belle, a French Maid or a Barmaid to name a few. She’s wearing the Olivia dress in Harvest Bloom and a corset from Lace Embrace.

Ms. Frizzle

Diane, our designer’s red curly hair was a natural for this outfit. You knew we’d do this one based on our Vanessa Final Frontier Dress, didn’t you!? Fluevogs Shoes.

Buccaneer Barb

Using Jack Sparrow as inspo, anyone can be a pirate wench, although having long hair helps. We made the headpiece from a scrap of fabric but a scarf would also work. Next we strung some beads and added narrow braids in Barb’ hair. Originally we were planning a Brooke dress as the basis for our Pirate cosplay but then well…the Norma dress in Parlour Ink arrived! We used one of our fav tricks and hitched up the skirt with a kilt pin to show a little more leg and the Lace Chiffon Crinoline underneath.

The ‘Not So Wicked’ Witch

Just in is a new party dress called Dita in Golden Galaxy, which we made into a decidedly elegant witch. We layered on the crinolines…all the more fun to ride a broom! Costco had old fashioned corn brooms which we witchified with some brown and black craft paint. Diane’s fav eyeliner (Stila Stay all day Waterproof liquid eyeliner)…for eyebrows, eyes and lips. Fluevog shoes.

We’ll have lots of fun things to check out online and at our Studio Shop (1635 Powell Street, Vancouver BC) coming up… New dresses plus a shipment of crinolines are on the way (and will be here in time for Halloween) and Erstwilder brooches too!!

Friday Oct 21 from 2-7

Saturday Oct 22 from 11-5

Love Cherry Velvet XOX

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I have always loved classic vintage style clothing. Back in the summer of 2011 I came on board with Cherry Velvet, a brand new concept from designer Diane Kennedy. Diane and I had a professional relationship already as I had sold her bamboo clothing line successfully for a number of years. I had just exited my own 10 year venture selling plus size clothing in my own shop in Vancouver and I wasn’t ready to give up on working in fashion. This line was everything I ever wanted to wear and I was more than excited to take on my role as an international sales rep. I still remember the excitement of seeing the first dresses arrive in the studio. I knew then that this was a very special line and that it was a perfect fit for me in more ways than one.

The very first Cherry Velvet dresses back in 2011.

Life can be unpredictable. After about a year I moved on to a different job but I left on good terms and I guess I always felt that someday I would be involved somehow with this amazing brand. Time moves on in the most interesting ways sometimes. In February 2017 I was contacted by Diane who asked if she could hire my band to entertain her customers at a Valentine’s customer appreciation event at the Cherry Velvet studio. The gig was a lot of fun and I loved seeing how far the line had come in the last 6 years. So many wonderful dresses!! In March of this year Diane contacted me again and asked me to come work for her. The timing was so perfect and, well, here I am. My role here is a little different than the first time around and suits me perfectly. Isn’t life interesting?

I’ve had Cherry Velvet dresses longer than almost anyone else and here’s the kicker. Those very first dresses are still in rotation in my closet. Those dresses are over 6 years old and they still look the same as the day I got them. Vintage style doesn’t go out of fashion. It’s classic for a reason!

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Did you know that teal green is the colour of Ovarian cancer -a much less talked about, but very serious type of women’s cancer? Unlike other more well-known types of women’s cancer, there is no screening test for cancer of your #ladyballs. This is a somewhat controversial name for your ovaries, but it does require both knowledge and guts to beat this difficult to diagnose disease.

It’s important to our designer, Diane, to spread awareness, as not only did she lose her Mom at a very young age, but her Sister-in-law as well. You may have heard the story of one of our early models, Elly Mayday, who at 25 yrs old was diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer.

There is no one specific symptom for Ovarian cancer and these symptoms are generally vague/non-specific (often mistakenly attributed to other causes). It’s called ‘the disease that whispers’ for good reason: it’s often overlooked and under-diagnosed.

Do you do a breast self-exam every month? What about going for an annual pap test? These simple steps could save your life. Taking care of your #ladyballs is not as straightforward.

These are the symptoms to be aware of:

Swelling or bloating of the abdomen

Pelvic discomfort or heaviness

Back or abdominal pain

Fatigue

Gas, nausea, indigestion

Change in bowel habits

Emptying your bladder frequently

Menstrual irregularities

Weight loss or weight gain

Other symptoms…

Mass or “lump” in your pelvis that you can feel

Inability to eat normally

Pain during intercourse

Vaginal bleeding

We hope we’ve inspired you to catch up on any tests you haven’t taken lately, and brought attention to ways to help spot Ovarian Cancer. Please also consider taking a moment to share this post with all the important women in your life so that they’ll be aware, too.

Here’s also something else you can do. From September 15th to the 30th, we’re donating 10% from the sale of each dress from our teal green dress collection to Ovarian Cancer research.

XOX Cherry Velvet

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Cherry velvet dresses are super easy to care for. With minimal fuss, our high-quality cotton dresses will last you for years. They don’t shrink or fade and are so timeless they can be worn over and over. You don’t need to save them for a special occasion!

To give you the official low down on care, here are the steps:

Care of Cotton Dresses

Yep, that’s it. It’s worth spending a few minutes on #3. Taking the time to smooth out the wrinkles after hanging it up will go a long way toward being iron free! Smooth the collar, put your hands in the pockets, run your hand along the hem until it’s hanging straight.

If you’re going somewhere special or your dress has come fresh out of the box, go ahead and iron it with steam on a cotton setting.

Hanging around

When it’s time to hang up your dress for another night, be sure to give it a little room in your closet so it can hang freely. That way when you are ready to put it on again it will be crease free and ready to go when you are!

Wear your dress!

It’s very important to take your dress out and wear it whenever possible. You’ll want to accessorize in a way that’s appropriate to the destination although not having a destination in mind is perfectly alright. You may illicit wistful stares and long lingering looks when wearing your dress. This is quite normal. You may also be approached by other women demanding to know where you found your dress. Just send them our way and we will look after the rest. Don’t forget to smile and say “Thanks!”.

There are so many creative ways to wear your dress and that’s the subject of an upcoming blog: 5 Ways to Wear your Cherry Velvet Dress